Saturday, August 20, 2011

Not much exciting has come in this week that I can put out on the sales floor right away. We received two more Christmas card orders, and several more cartons of fall stuff. What's on tap? Well, a lot of apples and ravens and zombies, actually.

But what was more exciting this week was the opening of Andie Zacher's new kids' shop, Little Monsters, just a few blocks away on 2445 N Farwell Avenue, just below Dewan Dental. Stacie had let me know that their soft opening was on Wednesday, and knew I'd want to check it out, particularly since I've been salivating over how beautifully the space is coming together for the last few weeks.

It's such a joyful store. That shade of green can't help but make you smile. The fixtures are so clever and there are lots of whimsical elements that you know I'm a big fan of. Andie's years working at Boutique Bebe gave her a sense of what her customers want...she's taken what was great about the old store and added her personality, plus a variety of price points. I was delighted to buy a Sky Bar from her candy rack to snack on.

Kid Clothing is her specialty, but she's got some great toys and accessories too (and yes, some books). Our selections are complimentary. Like Lynn at Beans, I can tell we are drawn to the same kinds of things--I'm pushing for Andie to buy the Rich Frog monster booties. I would say, however, that aside from the Mudpuppy basics (magnetic dolls, puzzles, and flip and draw books), our stock does not overlap too much. As we both agreed, we're not right next to each other and our customer bases do not fully overlap either.

Of course we're actually hoping they overlap more. That's why I'm writing this blog piece--so you can check the place out and buy some great kid stuff. I'm not giving you the whole story of how it came together however; this story deserves a big-time story.

Little Monsters is open 10 to 5:30 Monday through Saturday, plus extra hours on Tuesday evening until 7 pm. Their phone number is 414-964-2323 and you can find a bit more on the Little Monsters website.